Help or Hype? How Kids Use AI Chatbots for Mental Health

Artificial intelligence chatbots are no longer a novelty for U.S. teenagers. They’re a habit. A new Pew Research Center survey of teens found that 64 percent have used an AI chatbot, with more than one in four using such tools daily, and nearly one in eight using them for emotional support or advice.

The tenth annual Science on the Hill event brings together scientific experts, technology leaders, and policy staff for a conversation about how Congress and federal agencies can support innovation while protecting the public—especially young people—who increasingly rely on digital tools for support.

Discussion at the event will address the following questions:

· Safety First: Even when AI chatbots are grounded in solid behavioral science, how do we ensure they don’t share harmful or misleading advice with people in vulnerable moments? Could these chatbots form a risk to children's ability to form healthy attachments and relationships?

· Where People Are Actually Going for Help: ChatGPT was the most popular bot among teens surveyed by a wide margin, even though those systems aren’t built or evaluated for mental‑health care. What policies can help young people understand the risks as well as benefits and choose safe, evidence‑based tools that provide healthy connection?

· Congressional Options: What policy levers—programs, incentives, regulatory approaches, or public‑private partnerships—can help ensure that digital mental‑health tools are safe, transparent, and accessible? What regulations can be put into place at the federal level to regulate chatbots' abilities to encourage negative behaviors?

· Innovation With Guardrails: How can policymakers encourage responsible development across the private sector without slowing down promising advances that could expand access to care?

Hosted by Springer Nature Group, Scientific American, and Nature Portfolio, this event is designed to give congressional staff an engaging, science‑grounded look at one of today’s fastest‑moving policy challenges that directly affects youth, families, and communities in every district.

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher Springer Nature Group, Scientific American, The National Academies